Comprehensive Description

Description

Anseropoda placenta is a distinctly flattened species up to 20 cm in diameter. It has five short, webbed arms, which give a pentagonal to sub-pentagonal body outline with concave sides. The skin has a granular texture due to small groups of fine spines (paxillae) arranged in regular, radiating rows on the upper and lower surfaces with paxillae on the oral side being slightly larger. Tube feet are arranged in two rows bearing sucking discs. No pedicellariae are present and papulae (soft projections) are confined to the centre of the disc and mid-lines of rays. This species has on its upper surface a red or pink disc and lines radiating along the arms with pale pink or white between them. It's underside is yellow with a conspicuous red band around the margins.Anseropoda placenta feeds on benthic crustaceans (amphipods, cumaceans, mysids, crabs and hermit crabs), molluscs and echinoderms. This species has no known predators (Mortensen, 1927) and no other similar shallow water species. It breeds in the summer producing large eggs. The copepod Asterocheres siphonatus has been associated with Anseropoda placenta by Gotto (1993, 2004).